Episode 212: Doing Away with Errors/Rotating Positions/What Would Retired Players Hit?/Aesthetically Pleasing Players/3-0 Red Lights
Date May 29, 2013 Summary Ben and Sam answer listener emails about errors, ancient players, whether hitters should swing more often on 3-0, and more. Topics * Should we stop tracking errors? * 40+ aging curves * What player types you prefer to watch * Player rotation hypothetical * Swinging on 3-0 Intro Episode outtake sound clip Banter * Sam asks if Ben is 'in the 212' referring to the area code for Manhattan. * Following up from Episode 211, a listener notes that Jose Canseco is listed as the Fort Worth Cats' 3rd baseman. Email Questions * Kevin (Princeton, NJ): "A few days ago Miguel Cabrera hit a warning track fly ball that came down before the outfield wall but bounced off of Michael Bourn's glove and over the fence. Not only was this scored as a home run, but I haven't even found anyone questioning whether that ruling was appropriate instead of charging Bourn with an error. Rule 10.12 says an error should be charged to a fielder whose misplay permits a runner to advance one or more bases. Even if you think that the wall interfered with Bourn's attempt or that it wasn't a routine catch, those words strongly suggest that this play should have been at most a double and a two base error because to prevent a home run all Bourn had to do was literally nothing. Given that the line between hit and error is subjective and often arbitrary, and given that we're willing to accept a home run on a clear misplay like this without batting an eye, is it time to get rid of fielding errors entirely? You might have to keep some throwing errors for accounting purposes, such as when players advance additional as a result of bad throws." * Derek: "If Joe Girardi got 600 plate appearances today, what would he hit?...what current MLB manager would perform best (or any coach for that matter)? guesses he would hit .050/.075/.050 * Isaac: "Which do you find more aesthetically pleasing? A player with a massive amount of natural talent who makes the game seem easy and never appears to show effort (such as Robinson Cano or Ken Griffey, Jr.) or a player who constantly appears to be busting his ass and giving max effort. (Bryce Harper, Brett Lawrie)? * Lou (Cincinnati, OH): "Talking to some non baseball friends while the Reds' bullpen was spoiling Cueto's day on Sunday, we got into a discussion on baseball's origins and how so very much of the game was created 150 years ago and remained unchanged since. This led to speculation about how things could have gone differently. My question: what would the game be like if they rotated players like volleyball (either every inning or even every batter). Every player had to be able to man every position. What kind of player would be able to thrive in such an environment?" * John: "I've always wondered why players are so rarely given the green light to swing on a 3-0 count. I understand that you never want to give up an out when a free base is so close, but given the number of mediocre fastballs grooved center on a nightly basis really makes me question the practice. If anything it seems far more likely that you'll see a slider out of the zone 3-2 than 3-0. If you want a pitch to plant over the fence, 3-0 seems like the best time to look for it...Is there a logical reason behind the red light? Or is this just another one of baseball's unwritten rules?" Notes * Sam thinks that Barry Bonds would have a floor of .180/.290/.360 playing today. He guesses .020/.090/.035 for Girardi. * Hitters swing on 3-0 about 7% of the time. Links * Effectively Wild Episode 212: Doing Away with Errors/Rotating Positions/What Would Retired Players Hit?/Aesthetically Pleasing Players/3-0 Red Lights * Swing Tendencies on 3-0 Counts by Dan Brooks and Harry Pavlidis Category:Episodes Category:Email Episodes